Filming in New Zealand began on 21 March, 2011 and ended on 6 July, 2012;[7][8] Like The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy, The Hobbit films are being produced back-to-back and released over three consecutive years: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is due to be released in the United States 14 December, 2012, with The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug set for 13 December, 2013, and The Hobbit: There and Back Again set for 18 July, 2014.[1][4]

Peter Jackson initially planned to produce two films, but following the conclusion of principal photography, and on seeing early cuts of these films, he decided that he wanted 'to tell more of the tale'. Therefore on 30 July, 2012, Jackson announced that 'two films will become three'.[5][9]

Plot

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and The Hobbit: There and Back Again are expected to follow the plot from J.R.R. Tolkien'sThe Hobbit. The stories presented in all three films will, however, include events, locations and characters not found within the novel upon which the films are based, drawing from tales written by J.R.R. Tolkien elsewhere.

Plot descriptions for the second and third films have not yet been released.

Development

Directorship

The Hobbit as a movie has been anticipated by many fans since the release of The Lord of the Rings. Even before the pre-production began there had been and are still possible issues which could delay the production of Peter Jackson's The Hobbit. In early 2005 it came to the public attention that Jackson was suing New Line Cinema.[10] This cast doubt on whether or not The Hobbit would ever be made. Jackson later told fans that, due to the dispute, he would neither direct nor produce the film.[10] In late 2007 it was confirmed that Jackson would not direct, but would be an executive producer for two Hobbit movies.[11] It was later announced that Guillermo del Toro would direct the films, and that Jackson will be an active 'executive producer' with the possibility that he would help direct some scenes if necessary.[12]

However, on 30 May2010 it was revealed that del Toro could no longer commit himself to direct The Hobbit films, citing the continued delays in production in his reasoning.[13] Peter Jackson later announced that he would direct both films.[14]

The Tolkien Estate's legal action against New Line Cinema

The estate has [...] asked for a court order giving them the ability to terminate any rights the studio have to make films based on other Tolkien works, including The Hobbit.—BBC News Online[15]

Production of The Hobbit films was held up by the Tolkien Estate's legal action against New Line Cinema. The Estate should have received 7.5 per cent of all profits from the films under the agreement made by J.R.R. Tolkien with United Artists in 1969. Crucially, they also sought to stop the production of The Hobbit films until the case was settled.[15] The legal row was finally settled in September 2009 after the Tolkien Estate successfully sued New Line Cinema for breach of contract and fraud, receiving a reported $220 million in compensation.[16]

Industrial dispute in New Zealand

Even before the issue of the directorship had been settled, and before the project was given the go-ahead by the studios, the International Federation of Actors (IFA) told actors to actively avoid participation in the production of The Hobbit films.[17] The IFA issued this "Do Not Work Order", on 24 September, 2010, on the basis that the studios refused to engage in union-negotiated contracts.[18] Meanwhile the studios argued that they could not make an agreement with a trade union under New Zealand law.[17]

Peter Jackson subsequently warned that the dispute could lead to a huge delay and that production could easily transfer to Eastern Europe.[19] John Key, the incumbent Prime Minister of New Zealand, weighed in on the dispute saying that he hoped the dispute would not force The Hobbit production to move overseas. He also announced that the New Zealand government had gotten involved in the discussions.[20]

Whilst the studios announced that filming would begin the following February,[21] the dispute remained unsettled. With the studios seriously considering moving the production abroad, large numbers of New Zealanders protested in Auckland, Wellington, and Christ Church.[22] A settlement was finally reached on 27 October, 2010, with the Prime Minister himself announcing the news, hoping to prevent the loss of jobs in New Zealand and to reinforce the country's Tolkien tourism industry.[23] As part of the agreement, the New Zealand government passed legislation which clarified that film industry workers are independent contractors rather than employees.[24] Filming finally began on 21 March, 2011.[7]

On 30 July, 2012, Peter Jackson announced that there would indeed be a third "Hobbit" film. After watching the early cuts of the first two films, Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens decided that they wanted to take a chance to tell even more of the story.[5] He argued,

We know how much of the story of Bilbo Baggins, the Wizard Gandalf, the Dwarves of Erebor, the rise of the Necromancer, and the Battle of Dol Guldur will remain untold if we do not take this chance. The richness of the story of The Hobbit, as well as some of the related material in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings, allows us to tell the full story of the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the part he played in the sometimes dangerous, but at all times exciting, history of Middle-earth.—Peter Jackson[5]

On 31 August, 2012, it was revealed that the titles of the second and third films would be The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and The Hobbit: There and Back Again respectively. The release of the first and second film remained unchanged, whilst the third film is due for release on 18 July, 2014.[4]

Technical details

3D

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and The Hobbit: There and Back Again are being filmed in 3D using RED Epic cameras. A rig designed by 3ality Technica is being used in the filming of the three films; here two cameras and a mirror are used in order to achieve an intraocular effect similar to that of a human's (the distance between the eyes). This is how the depth required for 3D film is achieved.[29]

Most of John Howe's and Alan Lee's concept art has continued to be produced in 2D. However, they have collaborated on 3D pieces using the simple red and blue 3D effect.[29]

48 frames per second

Breaking with conventional filming techniques, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and The Hobbit: There and Back Again are being filmed by capturing 48 frames per second (FPS), twice the normal film standard of 24 frames per second. This makes the film look far more realistic. When describing what people thought when they saw clips of The Hobbit shown at 48 frames per second, Peter Jackson said that it's 'like the back of the cinema has had a hole cut out of it where the screen is and you're actually looking into the real world'.[29]

Additionally, the The Hobbit films are being filmed at a 5K resolution. This is substantially larger than the conventional 1080 HD resolution. The films are being filmed digitally onto 128 GB memory cards that fit into the RED Epic camera.[29]

One of the drawbacks of filming 48 frames per second at 5K resolution is that the make-up, prosthetic, prop, set, and costume departments have to work differently. For example, the make-up and prosthetic departments have to redden up the faces of the actors much more than usual because otherwise their skin colour will turn up yellow on the final film. Furthermore, real hair has to be used in order to achieve an authentic look when it moves around.[29]

Ten minutes of footage was shown at 48 FPS during the Warner Bros. presentation at CinemaCon2012. The reaction was mixed. The Los Angeles Times described the picture as 'hyper-realistic' and the Associated Press described 'vivid, with grass blades, facial lines and soaring mountains appearing luminous and pronounced. The actors looked almost touchable, as if they were performing live on stage'. However, an anonymous projectionist said that '[i]t looked like a made-for-TV movie'.[30][31]

Games and merchandise

"...It is a long tale..." — Aragorn
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Video games

Lego

On 17 December, 2011, it was announced that the Lego Group had received the rights to create Lego sets based on The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The first sets on The Hobbit are scheduled to be released in the end of 2012.[33]